Appendix: Writing

Some reading:

	"That Pernicious Passive Voice"
	"Characteristics of Real-World Audiences"
	"Explain Important Concepts When Writing for Nonspecialist Readers" (this also holds true for talking about research to an audience that includes people who are not specialists in your field--which is most audiences you will talk to!!!)
	Also, http://www.columbia.edu/acis/bartleby/strunk Text of the book, Elements of Style. This is an excellent reference book for good writing. Be sure to take a look at it.

Rules for Good Technical Writing
(None of these rules is absolute, but consider them carefully!)

1. Avoid overspecialized language (jargon). You are aiming for an audience quite a bit broader than just your advisor AND the meaning of words change over time. Terms such as "harvesting systems" and the words below may not mean in 2010 what they mean today. If you must use certain technical terms, define them for the reader. The definition could be one word (a synonym) or a few words in parentheses after the word, a sentence, or a couple of sentence. A separate glossary is almost never necessary.

Examples of words that should probably be defined:

zero tolerance
reclaimed mine sites
retention levels
clipping trial

2. Use examples and facts to illustrate general statements. Examples and facts show that you know what you are talking about (they add authority to your writing) and they make your writing much more interesting to the reader.

Some statements that need a fact or example or some specifics to make them clearer to the reader:

	"The species is widely distributed."
	"The potato is one of the most important food crops in the world."
	"These products are less expensive than those made from other types of wood."

3. Start general enough. Provide an overall context for your topic before getting too specific. Don't assume the reader knows all the pertinent background.

Example statements that are too specific for starting sentences:

	"Recent design research has emphasized systems design and the definition of goals. Through use of these techniques...." (Design research on what?)
	"Kiln-dried lumber contains an internal moisture content gradient." (What is kiln-dried lumber?)
	"Applications for global positioning systems have been growing rapidly through the past few decades, mainly because...." (Tell the reader what a global positioning system is before discussing their applications.)

4. Don't hesitate to use the first person. Call yourself "I" or, if appropriate (in the case of more than one author), "we."

Example: Use "I compared..." rather than "A comparison was made....."

5. Avoid (delete) words and expressions that really don't say anything or that are unnecessary in other ways.

Examples of unnecessary words and expressions:

fundamentally
basically
virtually
essentially
It was found that...
It should be noted here that...
....found to be....

6. Avoid abbreviations.

Examples:

use "nitrogen" rather than "N"
"Washington" rather than "WA"
"mountain pine beetle" rather than "MPB"
"laboratory" rather than "lab"
"integrated circuits" rather than "ICs"

7. Avoid slang (trendy words known only to a small group of people).

Examples: quick fixes, seat of the pants, in the pipeline, bottom line, pros and cons, etc.

8. Be consistent. Use the same words or symbols throughout your writing.

Examples:

Use "degrees C" or "慢" but not both.
Use "percent" or "%".

Exceptions might be text vs. tables. You can use "nitrogen" or "percent" in the text of a paper, and "N" or "%" in tables.

9. Be specific. If you use words such as "affect," "large," or "severe," Add some specific information that tells the reader HOW something was affected or HOW large or severe it was.

10. Use the active voice. Avoid all forms of the verb "to be"--including is, was, are, were, and so on.

Example: Instead of "Shown in Figure 6 is...", say "Figure 6 shows..."

11. Be positive! Don't sound apologetic, especially when describing results.

12. Avoid value-laden or judgmental words such as "should," alarmingly," "devastating," or "questionable."

13. Avoid wordiness and pretentiousness. Always choose the simplest and shortest way of saying something.

Examples:

Instead of: Use:

at this point in time
utilize
demonstrate
approximately
in the majority of cases
accomplished
has been shown to be
despite the fact that
in view of the fact that
has the capability of now
use
show
about
usually
done
is
although
because
can

14. Use verb tenses appropriately.

Past tense for specific factual information from published literature or from your own work:

"Average length of fish caught from 1989 to 1996 decreased by 25 percent."

Present tense for generalizations:

"Overuse of western lakes for recreational fishing has a negative impact on species X."

Additional notes:

e.g. is the abbreviated form of the Latin term exempli gratia, which means "for example" or "for instance." E.g. gives a subset or example. If you have "e.g.," you don't need "etc."

i.e. is the abbreviated form of the Latin id est, which means "that is to say" or "in other words." I.e. gives a synonym or definition.

When providing an example to back up a point you are trying to make, use e.g. If you're attempting to clarify or rephrase an idea, use i.e. Note the use of the comma after them.

We studied only mammals (e.g., mice).

We studied only mammals (i.e., warm-blooded animals with fur).

et al. is the abbreviation of et alia, meaning "and others." Note that only the second word is abbreviated so only the second word has a period after it. The expression et al. is used in the text when you are referencing something written by three or more people. It helps avoid cluttering up the writing. In such a case, you use the first author's last name, followed by et al., for example, (Smith et al. 1995) or Smith et al. (1995). If there are two authors, both names are used (Smith and Jones 1995) and et al. is not appropriate. Never use et al. in your reference citations at the end of a thesis or proposal or journal article. Write out the names of all authors.